Big 12 Baseball Roundup: A Major Shakeup

You know what they say about Big 12 standings... If you don't like them, just wait five minutes! Or maybe it was about Texas weather. They both apply.

If you missed this weekend in the Big 12 baseball circuit, you missed quite a bit. The conference standings almost entirely reshuffled, headlined by Oklahoma's first-ever sweep over Texas, sending the Longhorns from sole possession of first place to tied for fourth. If you blinked, things changed in a hurry.

West Virginia and Texas Tech remain the lone two ranked teams from the Big 12 and the conference's postseason representation is beginning to look bleak. Let's break down what happened in a wild weekend.

Blink And You'll Miss It

Seven days ago, the Big 12 standings looked almost entirely different. Just a few games separate the top from the bottom, so any weekend can change things in a hurry – that remains true moving forward. To understand just by how much things changed, let's look at the current standings:

1. West Virginia (+3 spots)
2. Oklahoma State (+3)
3. Kansas State (-1)
T4. Texas Tech (+2)
T4. Texas (-4)
T6. TCU (-3)
T6. Oklahoma (+1)
8. Kansas (-1)
9. Baylor (-)

How did we get here? The answer is complicated.

Break Out The Brooms

Oklahoma swept Texas in a massive weekend upset, and West Virginia pulled off an impressive sweep over TCU. Those two series did a majority of the shaking, rocketing WVU up the board and Texas and TCU down. TCU has now lost five games in a row – including Sunday's 17-7 shelling – and six of their last seven. The preseason conference favorite now falls below .500 in-league.

The Sooners notched their first-ever series sweep of Texas behind some seriously impressive pitching and defense. On the road in Austin, Oklahoma held Texas to just 11 total runs, including one on Friday. Previously, Texas led the Big 12 in scoring.

The Other Players

Other than those two major shakeups, Oklahoma State secured a series sweep of Kansas in Lawrence and Texas Tech took two of three from Baylor at home. Kansas State won two of three on the road against UC Irvine, a pretty strong series win for the Wildcats.

The Pokes continue to emulate their football program, opting to win games by scoring as much as they can, defense be damned. In their last five games (one vs. WVU, one vs. Oklahoma midweek, and three vs. Kansas), Oklahoma State combined for an average 19.4 runs per game with their opponent (5-0 in those games).

Baylor's Game 3 steal from Texas Tech prevented the Red Raiders from tying for third place with K-State, instead settling for a fourth place tie with Texas.

As is the case all season, Kansas State won their series with tremendous mound appearances from their pitching staff. Aside from a ridiculous 21-18 shootout with Kansas, K-State hasn't allowed more than five runs since April 2 (11 games) or more than six runs since March (14 games).

An upcoming series with Texas Tech may break that streak but, if it doesn't, Kansas State might be a serious upset threat in the Big 12 Tournament.

Team That Impressed Me The Most

When you can log a "first-ever" performance against a century-old rival, you win the weekend. The Oklahoma Sooners are my most impressive team of the week.

In the fall, OU was handed their worst-ever loss against Texas (49-0), so the Diamond Sooners decided to get revenge. The lone run allowed in Friday's game was a walk with the bases loaded in the second inning. The 'Horn logged just six hits and left seven men on base.

Reliever Braxton Campbell retired nine of 11 batters faced in three innings to maintain a 1-1 tie and eventual 2-1 lead. He notched the victory, his fifth on the season.

Notable Performances

Michael Brooks, INF, Kansas: Despite being swept by Oklahoma State, Brooks put on an offensive showcase. He logged 14 hits – the most nationally this weekend – eight of which went for extra bases. The RS sophomore hit three homers and a ridiculous five doubles.

David Mendham, 1B, Oklahoma State: Seven hits in 20 at-bats is serviceable, but 13 RBI on seven hits is downright efficient. The senior first baseman did just that, also notching two home runs, this weekend against Kansas. His 13 RBI are tied for the second-most of anyone this weekend in D1 baseball.

Braxton Campbell, RP, Oklahoma: Campbell entered the game ahead of the seventh inning with a 1-1 knot against the Big 12's top offense. Despite not logging any strikeouts, Campbell maintained the game and held Texas to peanuts – just two hits in 11 at-bats and no runs.

Big 12 College Baseball Standings

Rankings below courtesy of D1 Baseball.

1. #18 West Virginia Mountaineers (29-11, 8-4)

2. Oklahoma State Cowboys (28-13, 11-7)

3. Kansas State Wildcats (26-16, 9-6)

T4. #14 Texas Tech Red Raiders (29-13, 8-7)

T4. Texas Longhorns (27-15, 8-7)

T6. TCU Horned Frogs (22-18, 7-8)

T6. Oklahoma Sooners (22-19, 7-8)

8. Kansas Jayhawks (19-21, 5-10)

9. Baylor Bears (15-25, 6-12)

Upcoming Weekend Series

Conference Play

Kansas at Oklahoma (three games, Norman, OK)

Texas at TCU (three games, Fort Worth, TX)

#14 Texas Tech at Kansas State (three games, Manhattan, KS)

#18 West Virginia at Baylor (three games, Waco, TX)

Non-Conference Play

Oklahoma State at Michigan (three games, Ann Arbor, MI)

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